Turkey to offer wealthy foreigners new citizenship

Turkey has stepped up to entice more wealthy foreign property investors – with the chance to apply for citizenship.

The country announced it will grant citizenship to foreigners who buy property worth more than $1 million and a minimum of $2 million investment.

Alternatively, foreign investors will be able to take up citizenship if they have more than $3 million in a bank account for more than three years.

And with Istanbul set to be the property market generator for the next few years, given the amount of investment being ploughed into the transportation sector, such as the new third airport, the enticement could prove extremely popular.

More so, for Middle Eastern investors who have not been put off by the internal problems that Turkey is currently embroiled in.

For those looking to take advantage of the above regulations, they can utilise the services of TAM that will help smooth the process of not only your property buying needs but also the potential to apply for citizenship

The likes of Spain, Portugal and the US offer residency rights, but full-scale citizenship is what Turkey envisages. It will be particularly welcome with those business or property investors who have retained faith in the country.

The news also comes at a time when the Turkish Lira has been losing ground on the major currencies, including the US dollar and UK sterling. The citizenship issue is largely seen as helping to boost the property sector in a bid to boost the Turkish economy.

Last year more than 21,000 houses and parcels of land were sold to foreigners, according to the Ministry of Environment and Urban Planning.

The buyers topping the list were Iraqis, Saudis, Kuwaitis, UK, Russians and Afghans. The most preferred 5 provinces were Istanbul, Antalya, Bursa, Aydın and Yalova

Over the past decade, according to the Ministry of Environment and Urban Planning General Directorate of Land Registry and Cadastre, 8,796 parcels of land and 102,745 dwellings have been sold.

The buyers topping the list were Iraqis, Saudis, Kuwaitis and Russians, with foreigners snapping up more than 5,000 units in Istanbul and over 4,000 in the resort of Antalya.

The government decree also applied to foreigners who can prove they have helped to create a minimum of 100 jobs in Turkey could also opt for citizenship. Alternatively, they would be eligible for citizenship if they hold government-issued bonds worth at least $3 million and have not been diversified for three years.

National media reported that developers and real estate experts in Turkey hoped the move would help unlock a minimum of $10 billion worth of property to foreigners if citizenship or residence permits were offered.